Torch, Fall 1999

Manhattan and Hawaii. Although these placements on American soil do not require a passport, the experience is definitely cross– cultural. Intensive Preparation The selection and placement process for student teaching abroad through Cedarville College is both extensive and thorough. Students go through a formal application and screening process and must be considered in the top one-third to one-half of the class in order to be considered. Upon approval, the students begin the placement procedure. Cedarville cooperates with the Christian College Teacher Education Coordinating Council (CCTECC), an organization that purposes "to provide overseas and cross-cultural teaching experiences for education majors." All Cedarville education students planning to student teach abroad are required to attend a CCTECC– sponsored weekend, called a Pre– Experience Orientation (PEO) . The PEO is designed to prepare student teachers for adapting to another culture and working with the intercultural students they will have in their classes. Many students have affirmed the value of the PEO. Carrie Mansfield '99, who spent a winter quarter in Cameroon, West Africa, was apprehensive at first. "Looking back, I realize how much of it was so applicable,'' she shared. ''After being involved with [intercultural students], I realize they are different. I can better understand their feelings of loneliness and not fitting in." Following the PEO, students enroll in their methods classes. Cedarville students must have a successful methods experience and exhibit signs of excellent teaching potential in order to get final clearance to go overseas. Stretching Experiences Language barriers, cultural differences, and the absence of most things familiar combined with typical teaching challenges make intercultural student teaching a stretching experience. Most students return with enthusiastic reports and a variety of cultural experiences to share. For example, while student teaching in the Dominican Republic during the winter of 1999, Susie Dunham '99 and Alicia Baisley '99 ventured into the center of Santiago, where they dodged Dominican children dressed in Mardi Gras costumes trying to whack spectators with inflated animal bladders. Another time they attended a baseball game where Dominican hero Sammy Sosa threw out the first pitch. Through a friendship made with a Chinese national while student teaching, Todd Musser '99 had a chance to visit a remote village where no westerner had ventured in more than 50 years. Mansfield witnessed a celebration for the birth of a baby in West Africa, which included tribal dancing. Although the vast majority of returning student teachers have positive experiences and enthusiastically encourage others to go, there are some who face special challenges. Mandy McKay '99 student taught in Bolivia during the winter quarter of 1999. She left with plans to do great things for God and make a difference in the lives of her students. Unexpectedly, she suffered from a serious illness that kept her in and out of a Bolivian hospital for approximately three weeks and extended her student teaching experience. Although this was a trying experience, McKay came home closer to God and more sensitive to His plans. She advises, "Go with NO expectations of what God is going to do. The most important thing in life is to go through life doing what God wants, not trying to fulfill your own expectations." McKay learned the important Torch 5